If you’re a fan of the show “The Office,” then you most likely know the exact moment someone is referring to when they say “Kevin’s Famous Chili.” The opening scene to episode 26 of season five has unexpectedly become a cultural phenomenon and arguably one of the show’s most iconic moments.
“The scene was only 35 seconds long but it is easily one of the most well-known intros to an episode in the series’ history,” writes Shane Lao via TODAY. In fact, the chili scene became so famous that the entire episode, named “Casual Friday,” even has its own Wikipedia page.
In the opening scene, we see Kevin carrying an enormous pot full of chili from his car to the Dunder Mifflin office while he narrates his excitement. “At least once a year, I like to bring in some of my Kevin’s Famous Chili.”
Audience members can see disaster coming from a mile away as he’s struggling to carry the heavy pot while simultaneously narrating the details of his hard work. “It’s a recipe passed down from Malones for generations.” Then, unsurprisingly, Kevin drops the chili and it spills all over the carpet floor. As he’s desperately scooping the remains back into the pot and sliding around in his own creation, you hear him say, “It’s probably the thing I do best.”
In an interview with TODAY, Brian Baumgartner—the actor who plays Kevin Malone—talks about the unexpected cult following that has gathered behind Kevin’s Famous Chili. “It was like, well, you’re not escaping this, we might as well embrace it,” he tells TODAY.
For a while, Office fans had to do their best to piece together Kevin’s narration of his recipe on their own if they wanted to attempt making his famous chili. That was until an easter egg was discovered, tucked away in Peacock’s User Agreements. The full list of ingredients and cooking instructions are listed in detail, as seen in a Tik Tok by Mckenzie Floyd.
As if this weren’t enough for diehard Office fans, Brian Baumgartner has released his cookbook, “Seriously Good Chili Cookbook,” which of course includes a recipe for Kevin’s Famous Chili.
In honor of Baumgartner’s new book and the sheer magnitude of fame that this opening scene of episode 26 has cultivated, I felt it was necessary that I try making Kevin’s Famous Chili for myself.
